Marty Marrs wins the Illinois SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500 Regional Competition!

Marty Marrs claims the “Illinois Best Bricklayer” title.

It was September 20th, 2023, at Brickworks Supply Center in Bridgeview, Illinois where mason Marty Marrs, and tender Tony Savant with Marty Marrs Masonry won the Illinois SMBL500 regional competition. Laying 521 bricks in 60 minutes, they secured their tickets to the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500® event in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the World of Concrete Tradeshow taking place in January 2024.

This team’s skill and speed led them to victory with over a 100+ brick margin against the second-place team. The Marrs-Savant team walked away with $600 in cold hard cash, a Marshalltown Tool Bag, 2-Foot Stabila Level, and their spot in Vegas.

The 2023 Regional Series includes 23 events throughout the United States and Canada. To qualify for the SMBL500 event in Las Vegas, teams will compete at one of the 23 individual regionals and battle for first place to secure their spot in the national competition. The teams consist of one mason and one tender; working on a 26-foot-wide wall, they have 60 minutes to lay as much brick as possible with the fewest craftsmanship errors. These teams are only allowed to compete once at one regional event throughout the year, and each duo that wins first place will advance to what is known as the “Superbowl of Masonry.” At the World Championship, they will compete to win part of $125,000 in cash in prizes, including a Kubota RTV-X1140, Essick Pro12 mixer, and of course, the title, “World’s Best Bricklayer.”

The second-place winner was mason Scott Savant and tender Nick Lasecki with Marty Marrs Masonry. Along with second place, this team snagged the “Top Craftsman” title. The Top Craftsman award goes to the team who is deemed by the judges to have the ‘most-sellable’ wall. With zero deductions, this team walked away with $1,050, along with a Marshalltown Tool bag, and a 2-foot Stabila Level. Taking third place was mason Fernando Barboza and tender Anthony Ocegueda with Pro Brothers Construction, laying 285 bricks in 60-minutes. For their efforts, this team won $400, a Marshalltown Tool Bag and a 2-Foot Stabila Level.

Accompanied to the Illinois Regional event was the JR. BL500. This contest is a shortened rendition of the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500, where students and masonry apprentices display their skills for the chance to win cash and prizes! These competitors battle for the “JR BRICKLAYER 500 CHAMPION” title. The first-place winner of the JR. BL500 competition was mason Nicholas Aurelio with District Counsil Training Center laid an impressive 143 bricks in 20-minutes. In second place was mason Will Evans, who also is with the District Counsil Training Center; he laid 134 bricks. In third place was mason Taylor Yates with the District Counsil Training Center; he laid 133 bricks in 20-minutes. This was an impressive battle between the JR. BL500 competitors with only being a few bricks apart.

Disclosures:

In 2019, the SPEC MIX organization partnered with other masonry associations to create the JR. SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 Competition. In 2024, of the 22 Regional Series competitions, 20 will also hold a JR. BRICKLAYER 500 contest to allow high schoolers and masonry apprentices to compete for top honors and prizes. The program has proven remarkably successful and highly supported by the Mason Contractors Association of America, school administrators, and numerous masonry supply manufacturers and dealers. To learn more, visit https://www.specmix.com/jr-spec-mix-bricklayer-500/.

2025 World Championship: If you are interested in becoming a fan, the 23rd annual SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 World Championship will take place in January 2025, at the World of Concrete tradeshow in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Las Vegas Convention Center Bronze Lot. At this competition, world-class masons lay it all on the line to claim their portion of the total purse valued at more than $125,000.

2023 JOURNEYMEN SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 ILLINOIS REGIONAL RESULTS

2023 JUNIOR SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 ILLINOIS REGIONAL RESULTS